Sniffing a Slim Fast

For those who aren't familiar, I work at Hewlett-Packard. I started working here in June of 2003, and since then have put over 11 years under my career belt. Some of you reading this may have children who are 10-11 years old. When I showed up for my first day of work, this unopened can of Slim Fast was there (note the expiration date on the bottom):

I kept working at HP and the can kept staying in the refrigerator. Each fridge at HP has a sign on it that says it will be cleaned out every Friday, but that never happens. This can has remained in the work fridge since it went bad in mid-2002. Through power shutdowns, layoffs, hiring swells, and late night debug sessions this can remained. During the tenure this can spent in the refrigerator, HP cycled through 6 official and interim CEOs (Carly Fiorina, Bob Wayman, Mark Hurd, Cathie Lesjak, Leo Apotheker, Meg Whitman).

A few years ago, myself and two friends at work agreed that if any of us ever left HP under our own volition (ie: not layoffs) then the one leaving would need to open the can and sniff it. Today, one of the three (not me) had his last day at HP and he kept his word:

Surprisingly, there was no weird smell and the slim fast had barely curdled after 12+ years past the "best by" date. Think of that the next time you try going on a diet.